Rotary braiding machine



Feb. 18, 1930- M. KRl'ssu-zP 1,747,720

ROTAR Y BRAIDING MACHINE Filed Feb. 11, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 EIE.E

ATTORNEYS;

Feb. 18, I930. M.'KRISSIEP ROTARY BRAIDING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Feb. 11, 1929 firs. 3

INVENTOR. Max IIz-issigv BY ATTbRNEYS.

Patented Feb. 18, 1930 unites STATES PATENT orrics MAX KRISSIEP, OF WYOMISSING, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO TEXTILE MACHINE. WORKS, 0F WYOMISSING, PENNSYLVANEA, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA ROTARY BRAIDING MACHINE Application filed February 11, I929. Serial No. 539,109.

My invention relates to rotary braiding machines, and more particularly to those eniploying two oppositely rotated sets of bobbins, thethreads of one setbeing sinuously guided over and under the threads of the other set duringtheir opposite rotarytravel, my main objects being to provide simplified and improved mounting and drive .mecha- 'nisms for the bobbin carriers and positive guide means for g the sinuously traversed threads, such simplified structures being economical to manufacture and insuring more perfect production at greatly increased speed of operation.

My improvements are fully described in connection with the accompanying drawings, and the novel features thereof pointed out in the appended claims.

Fig. 1 is a central vertical cross-sectional View of a braiding machine embodying my improvements, taken substantiallyon the line 11 of Fig. 2, certain parts being broken away and others omitted to more clearly disclose the essentialfeatures.

- Fig. 2 is avplan view, certain parts being broken away or omitted.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view, taken substantially on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

It is common practice in rotary or highspeed braiding machines to employ an upper set of bobbins Sand a=lowerset 6, carrying the supply of thread or yarn, and to rotate these two sets in opposite directions, the thread of one set crossing those of the other set durin such rotations and all meeting at an axial braiding point, such as eyelet 7, to form a usual braid, which latter is commonly wound up on a take-ofi drum, such as indicated at 8.

My present improvements comprise the mechanism now to be described'as embodied in the preferred construction indicated in the drawings, and relate more particularly to improved means for mounting and traverslng the two sets .of carriers andto the means for guiding the threads to insure their accurate crossing in the formation of the braid.

In the specific structure of the drawings ,a suitable housing is shown as enclosing and mounting the braiding mechanism, and comprises a flanged base section 9, carrying an enclosing wall section 10, and a crown or open cap section 11. The base section 9, as shown, is formed with a horizontal platform or partition plate 12 provided with a midway flanged aperture 13; and crown section 11, has a large circular opening 14 coaxial with said bearing aperture 13, and carries two uprights 14 and 15, which latter have suitable bearings-for a shaft 16 mounting take off drum 8, and a drive shaft 17 for the latter as indicated. Eyelet 7 maybe suitably supported co-axially with openings 13, and 14 as by a bracket or arm 18 secured to upright 14..

Aperture 13 forms a fixed bearing for a hollow post or standard 20 suitably secured therein as by its integral flanged base por" tion 21, and its upper end fixedly carrying one member of a two part bobbin supporting platform forming a horizontal partition within the housing below the crown-plate 11.

Said two-part platform is preferably formed, as indicated, of an outer ring-like portion 25 and an inner. disc-like portion 30. Said ring-like portion 25 has its outer edge 26 fixedly secured to the housing by engage ment therewith between its wall section 10 and crown section 11, and its inner portion formed with an integral downwardly inclined or angular extension 27 the free edge of the latter-being sinuously curved to form recesses 28 and projections 29 spacedly arranged around said inner edge. Said disclike portion 30 is shown with a flanged inner end 31' fixedly engaged on standard 20, and its outer portion formed with an integral upwardly inclined or angular extension'32,and its freecircumference sinuously curved to form recesses 33 and projections 34: which inte'rengage with and cooperate with recesses 28 and projections 29 to form a continuous sinuous passage-way 35 separating said twopart platform. The horizontal partsof platform portions 25 and 30, as shown, lie in different planes, and their angular extensions 27 and 32'lie in the same inclined plane to jointly form a circular wall portion angular.- ly inclined to the braiding point formed by ring 7. i

Said inclined wall projections 29 and 34,

said carriers. is in the form of a dished wheel, lts rim 47 as shown, have registering recessed grooves which jointly form a continuous circular carrier race-way 36 for the upper set of bobbins 5, coaxial with standard 20; and a second sinuously curved cam groove 37 in said wall portions which operates, as hereafter described, drive-connecting slide bars of a series of bobbin carriers 40 movably mounted in said carrier race way 36. V

A separate carrier 40 is provided for each bobbin 5, and is preferably formed, as shown, of a lenticular plate having a bobbin supporting spindle 41 and a race-way engaging foot or slide member 42. Each carrier, as shown,is transversely apertured and slotted to receive an actuating slide bar 43 provided with a downwardly projecting swivelled stud 44, preferably of lenticular shape, adapted to engage and move in cam groove 37, the sinuosity of the latter moving said slide'trans- Versely of the carrier movement in race-way 36 and so as to alternately project beyond said carrier edges.

To rotate the carriers 40 in their race-way 36, I provide, as shown, two carrier drive members 45 and having opposed circular rims concentrically spaced adjacent said circle of carriers and on opposite sides of the latter, said rims being provided respectively with spaced notches or recesses 46 and 51 adapted to receive the projected ends of carrier slide bars 43 so as to alternately drive Drive member 45, as shown,

provided with one of said series of spaced notches 46, and its hub 48 secured to the projecting end of a tubular shaft 56 rotatably mounted axially in hollow standard 20, the lower end of said shaft 56 depending below said standard 20 and carrying a drive gear wheel 57,the central aperture in said tubular shaft 56 permitting the introduction of a' central core to the braided fabric when desired. Carrier drive member 50, is shown, as a flanged ring or annulus, its inner periphery 52 provided with the other of said series of spaced notches 51, its outer periphery having integral gear teeth 53, and its flange forming an overhanging supporting rim 54, which is indicated as riding on antifriction carrying rollers 55 suspended from housing crown section 11, so said drive member 50 may freely rotate.

The lower set of bobbins 6, which are shown as travelling below the two-part platform 2530, are indicated as hung in suitable brackets fixed to the under side of a bobbin carrier 61, which latter is rotatably mounted on spindle 20 as by means of an integral axial sleeve member 62 strung on said spindle, the lower end of said sleeve hearing within the flanged bottom 21 of said spindle and having fixed thereto a drive gear 63. The periphery of said bobbin carrier 61 is provided, as shown, with radial projections 64, one for each bobbin 6, angularly inclined upwardly so as to lie in spaced parallel relation beneath the inclined circular wall portion of said two part platform 2530, the free ends of said projections 64 pivotally mounting thread guide devices or arms 65, having eyeleted ends 66 engaging in platform passageway 35 in which theyare traversed by the rotation of carrier 61, to carry their respective bobbin threads first over and then under the threads of the upper set of bobbins 5 rotating in an opposite direction.

The rotary parts above set forth may be driven in any convenient manner, the drawings indicating a pulley driven bevel gear 70 engaging a similar gear 71 on a Vertical shaft 72 mounted in the housing sections and extending above the latter to a supporting bracket 73 fixed to upright 15. Spaced gears 75 and 76 on said shaft 7 2 mesh respectively with the gear wheel 57 driving-carrier drivemember 45, and with the gear teeth 53 formed on carrier drive-member 50, the pitch circles of said gear teeth 53 and gear wheel 57 being equal and gears 75 and 76 of the same diameter, so that said drive members 45 and 50 will be rotated in the same direction and at equal speed. A separate Wheel 77 on shaft- 72, through the medium of a double gear 78, drives gear 63 and its connected bobbin carrier 61 at equal speed with, but in an opposite direction to the rotated carrier drive members 45 and 50. A worm gear 80 on the upper end of shaft 72, is indicated as driving. through suitable gearing mounted on upright 15, shaft 17, which latter is geared to take-up drum 8.

It will be noted that the inclined circular wall portion of the two-part platform 2530, in which race way 36 is formed, tilts the carriers 40 so that their bobbin supporting spindles 41 are axially inclined toward the braiding point during their entire rotary travel, and the threads from said bobbins traverse in a substantially fixed conical plane with its apex at said braiding point. The threads of the lower set of oppositely rotated bobbins 6 are threaded through the eyeleted ends 66 of thread guides 65 and pass through passage way 35 to the braiding point, and as said eyeleted ends 66 are traversed in said passageway by rotation of bobbin carrier 61, said threads traverse the sinuous course of the latter to pass to-and-fro between the rotating upper set of bobbins 5 and thus travel over and under the thread of the latter to interengage and form the braid.

Cam groove 37 is so shaped as to shift each carrier slide bar 43 so that its projecting end will engage a notch 46 of carrier drive member 45 as said carrier rides in the sections'of race way 36 formed in the projections 34 of platform portion 30; and reversely shift said slide bar 43 into engagement with a notch 51 of carrier drive member 50 as the carriers ride in the sections of said raceway 36 formed in the projections 29 of platform portion25, thus insuring constant clearance of passage way for traverse therethrough of the threads of the lower set of bobbins 6, while maintaining continuous engagement of the carriers 40 with one or other of said carrier drive members 30 or 50.

Thethread guides 65, with their passageway engaged eyeleted ends 66 positively position and spacedly traverse the threads of the lower set of bobbins 6 so as to always maintain their fixed relative relation to the reversely traversed threads of the upper set of bobbins 5 insuring accurate thread crossings and their consequent proper interengagement at the braidingpoint in the formation of a perfect braided fabric. And due to the two carrier drive members and and the above described cam-groove-shifted drive-engaging slide-bar 43, the passage way 36 is always unobstructed with comparatively slow movement of said slide, thus permitting greatly increased running speed of the machine and consequent greater production. And moreover the essential machine of my mechanism as above set forth has few moving parts permitting its ready manufacture at economical cost.

Having thus fully described the nature of my invention and its operation, I do not de sire to limit myself to the specific structure described, as modification may be readily de-' vised within the scope of my invention as defined in the following claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a braiding machine comprising two oppositely'revoluble sets of bobbins, a stationary two-part platform having division edges spaced to form an endless sinuous passageway, said platform parts having a circular race-way, carriers for one of said sets of bobbins movable along said race-way, two carrier drive members concentric with said race-way and means for effecting driving connection alternately between said carriers and the respective drive members.

2. In a braiding machine comprising two oppositely revoluble sets of bobbins, a stationary two-part platform having division edges spaced to form an endless sinuous passage-way, said platform parts having a circular race-way, carriers for one of said sets of bobbins movable along said race-way, two carrier drive members concentric with said race-way, and. shiftable devices on said carriers arranged to alternately engage said drive members.

3. Ina braiding machine comprising two oppositely revoluble sets of bobbins, a stationary two-part platform having division edges spaced to form an endless sinuous passage-way, said platform parts having a circular race-way, carriers for one of said sets v of bobbins movable along said race-way, two

carrier drive members arranged in opposed concentric relation to said race-way, radially shiftable devices on said carriers alternately engageable with said drive members, and a platform cam-groove adapted to determinedly move said radial devices.

5. In a braiding machine comprising two oppositely'revoluble sets of bobbins, a stationary two-part platform having division edges spaced to form an endless sinuous passage-way, a bobbin carrier for one of said sets of bobbins rotatably mounted below saidplatform, and thread guide devices on said bob: bin carrier engage-ably traversing said sin uous passage-way.

6. In a braiding machine comprising two oppositely revoluble sets of bobbins, a stationary two-part platform having division edges spaced to form an endless sinuous passage-way, a, bobbin carrier for one of said sets of bobbins rotatably mounted below said platform, and threadguide I devices pivotally mounted on said bobbin carrier and having their free ends engageably traversing said sinuous passage-way.

7. In a braiding machine having two sets of bobbins, a stationary two-part platform having division edges spaced'to form an endless sinuous passage-way, said platform par-ts having a circular. carrier race-way, carriers for one of said sets of bobbins movable along said race-way in one direction, two carrier drive members concentric with said raceway, means for effecting driving connection alternately between said carriers and the respective drive members, anda bobbin-carrier below said platform forthe other set of bobbins movable oppositely to said carriers and having thread guide devicesv traversingsaid sinuous passage-way.

8. In a braiding machine comprising two oppositely revoluble sets of bobbins, a stationary two part plat-form having an angular intermediate'circular wall portion with division edges spaced to form an endless sinuous passage-way, said angular wall having a circular race-way, carriers for one of said set of bobbins movable along. said race-way, and

two opposed carrier drivemembersadjacent said angular wall portion, and meansfor determinedly effectingdriving connection be tween said carriers and the respective drive mem rs i I 7 9; In a braiding machine comprising two oppositelyrevoluble sets of bobbins, a stationary two-part platform having an angular intermediate circular wall portion with division edges spaced to form an endless sinuous passage way, said angular wall having a circular race-way, carriers for one of said set of'bobbins movable in said race-way, two opposedca'rrier drive members adjacent said angular wall portion, spaced notches in the rim of said respective drive members, radially shiftable notch-engageable devices on the respective carriers, and a platform cam groove adapted to determinedly shift said notch engageable devices to alternately engage with said carrier drive members.

10. In a braiding machine having two sets of bobbins, astationary two-part platform having a circular race-way and carriers for one of said sets of bobbins movable in said race-way, a rotatable bobbin carrier for the other set of bobbins, two carrier drive members for said race way carriers, comprising a rotary member mounted coaxially with said rotated bobbin carrier, and a spaced rotatably mounted concentric ring member, means for effecting a driving connection of the carrier members alternately with the coaxial member and the concentric ring member, means to rotate said bobbin carrier in one direction, and means to jointly rotate said two carrier drive members in an opposite direction.

11. In a braiding machine having two sets of bobbins revoluble about an axis in opposite directions at varying distances from the braiding point, means for causing threads from the more distant bobbins, to sinuously travel across the path of the nearer bobbins, inner and outer driving means adjacent said nearer path, and means effecting driving connection between the bobbins of the nearer path and said inner and outer driving means alternately.

- 12. In a braiding machine having two sets of bobbins revoluble about an axis in opposite directions at varying distances from the braiding point, means for causing threads from the more distant bobbins, to sinuously travel across the path of the nearer bobbins, inner and outer driving means adjacent said nearer. path, and means effecting driving connection between the bobbins of the nearer pathand said inner and outer driving means alternately and synchronously with the pas sage of threads from the more distant bobbins to the opposite side of the path of the nearer bobbins. a

7 I 13. In a braiding machine having two sets of bobbins, revoluble about the same axis in opposite directions and at varying distances from the braiding point, the path of the bobbins of one of'said sets sinuously crossing that ofthe' other, driving means within and without the circle of one of said paths, and means for alternately effecting driving connection between the bobbins of the last named path and the respective driving means.

14. In a braiding machine havingitwo sets 

